A common complaint for first time takers of 2級 is not having enough time, particularly on the 読解・文法 section. The best way to get faster at reading is, not surprisingly, reading. At this level in your studies, regardless of time limits and considerations, you should be reading as much as possible anyway.

For 文字・語彙, I recommend Unicom's 漢字単語ドリル２級 book. It sorts the kanji by those that share phonetic elements, single character words with the same pronunciation but different meaning, and the same for 熟語. Each character is explained through the vocabulary that uses it and each word has at least one example sentence with full, but coverable, furigana.

For 文法, ALC's どんな時どう使う表現文型５００ contains all the grammar points covered on both ２級 and １級 in one book. Although the test will be changing after this December, if you plan on continuing your studies regardless of the JLPT, this book might be helpful. Another common recommendation is 完全マスター, which is half the price but includes only one level per book, making it a less useful general resource.

I definately agree about the reading, it is one thing I seriously underestimated when I took the test. You do need to read, read and read more. You can have a huge passage on the test, it will take you a while to read and u may not fully understand it, then when the questions come, 9/10 time you will have to re-read some of the passage to find the answer. It is so time consuming. I would suggest reading magazines, newpaper articles, short stories etc. The faster you get the better.

I agree with the above posters that reading, anything, as long as it's diverse, is probably the best way to prepare for JLPT2. Plenty of stuff available on the net!It's a pretty ambigious** level and if you've never taken JLPT before, I strongly recommend trying your hand at some previous or preparation tests, just so you know what you're in for. Timewise as well!Clay has some for sale, and every now and then you'll find some on ebay. It's worth checking out every now and then. At the moment, the only things available on ebay are from a Japanese seller who is only marginally cheaper.

where will you be taking the test?

I'll PM you as I've commited 1 or 2 reading exercises and question to virtual paper.(If anyone else is interested in these as well, simply let me know)

I know. Hopefully, I'm registering tonight after some discussion with my parents. I didn't even think it was an option for me to head ALL the way over to Chicago for it, but my dad suddenly asked me if I would like to take it about 4/5 days ago. Then I had to consult with my teacher on which level to take........

Yea I'd go with reading too, get comfortable with speed reading, there are lots of books focusing on 読解 and ofcourse a lot can be just found on Japanese sites. I like Japan's Yahoo Kids since they cover a lot of different material, good for vocab building too.

katafei>I would love those reading exercises as well, if they're for 2kyuu ^^

I would say, DEFINITELY take some practice tests, find out how you score, and study where you're still low. I'm personally trying to cram as much complex grammar/random vocab into my head as possible, as my reading comp/listening are ok. But weaknesses differ by individual, so~ I would give you my study aids, but I kind of need them XD I'm using:

・合格できる：2級ー日本語能力試験（CD2枚付）・JLPT2008 Level 1/2 Test & Answer Key

Also using a bunch of website exams/reviews. I can list those here if it'd be helpful ^^

There is one week remaining before the test. It may be possible to cram for the 文字・語彙 and 文法 parts, but it takes more than just cramming for 読解 and 聴解.

Some tips for the first, longer reading passages in the 読解 section:

1) There are five basic types of passages: 説明文, 論説文, 随筆, 小説, and 対話. A quick look at the title and source, as well as an unusual format (such as heavy dialog), can help determine which it is. Reading the first sentence will often confirm the above.

2) Unlike English, the core idea of a passage is often presented at the end of a piece. Reading the last paragraph first will help you understand the general direction of the piece. This is especially true of opinion pieces.

In the case of shorter pieces, the same is true of the last sentence or two. If the question asks the overall nature of the piece (本文の内容とあっているもの一つ選びなさい, この文章で著者がXXについて言おうとしていることは何か), go straight to the end.

3) Don't be afraid to mark the passage up. Words that repeat, the appearance of new characters, who is speaking, and first person references are all good candidates.

Some tips for 聴解:

1) Use the time during the examples to flip through the actual questions. For more complicated pictures and graphs, mark the differences. For section two, filling in all the ただしくない bubbles ahead of time is easier for some than marking bubbles as they listen (bring a separate eraser if you plan to do this).

2) Take notes. Use whichever language comes to mind first. Writing kanji is often too time consuming so use shorthand or kana.

3) The questions often start with 男の人と女の人がXXで話しています. This can be ignored; the who of the actual question is much more important (男の人は女の人に、どうするように言っていますか, etc.).

Harisenbon wrote:You might want to also check out the 完全マスター series. The grammar explanations in their books are really great.

I second this recommendation. 完全マスター is what I used to study for the JLPT1 and I think it really helped. They cover a lot of grammar points that are necessary for the test but that you might not come across in your casual reading/listening, even with native materials.